


Begin Again

by purestilinski



Category: Marvel, The Amazing Spider-Man (Movies - Webb), The Punisher (TV 2017)
Genre: Coffee Shops, F/M, Frank eavesdrops, TASM AU, set before Punisher S1
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-04
Updated: 2019-07-04
Packaged: 2020-06-03 17:05:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,059
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19468333
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/purestilinski/pseuds/purestilinski
Summary: Frank Castle watches love blossom.





	Begin Again

**Author's Note:**

> This was inspired by Taylor Swift's "Begin Again".

Frank Castle is tired. Damn tired. It’s been a long day. Long week. Long month. Long year. Hell, long life, even. 

He sips his crappy coffee. The thing’s disgusting, but he doesn’t care. He needs the caffeine in order to keep his eyes open. There’s a kid, can’t be more than eighteen, who’s standing nervously by the door. Blue shirt. Brown hoodie. Worn, hand-me-down jeans. Spiked brown hair. One of his hands is raised to his mouth and Frank watches as the teenager bites at his fingernails. The other hand is wrapped firmly around a white skateboard, the underside of which is covered by chemical formulas and mathematical equations that Frank doesn’t remember learning in high school. Maybe the kid’s a genius. But he’s pissing Frank off. 

The kid’s anxiety is making him feel uncomfortable. There’s no threat nearby, he’s made sure of it. But watching the display of negative emotion is getting on his nerves. He’s really tempted to say something but he knows he looks like a homeless man. Ragged clothes. A hat that hides most of his face. A lumberjack beard. 

He wants the kid to calm down, not run scared. 

He wonders why the kid’s so fidgety and the only answer that he can come up with is that he’s waiting for someone. Someone special. A first date with a cute girl, maybe. He scoffs at the thought. Idiot kids and their idiot ideas of love. He used to believe in love. Back when he had a wife. And kids. Before they were taken from him. Now, he thinks love is a fool’s game. Nothing good ever lasts, so why bother. 

The door of the cafe swings open and both Frank’s gaze and the kid’s snap toward the sound. A beautiful young woman walks in. She’s wearing a white t-shirt, casual gray coat with the buttons undone, and a white skirt. She’s got blonde hair the shade of the sun and sparkling blue eyes. He takes another sip and finishes off his drink. When the waiter comes by and asks if he wants a check, he hesitates.

“No, not yet. Could I get another black coffee?” 

The waiter takes his empty cup and scurries off, leaving Frank by himself. The two teenagers have relocated to the table right next to him. The boy’s skateboard is propped against the table. The quiet noise of a chair being pulled back reaches Frank’s ears and he flicks his eyes to the two teens. The boy helps the girl into her chair, a small smile on his face. She returns it, taking her seat. The boy sits across from her. A waitress is there immediately to take their orders. The boy, voice shy, asks for a hot chocolate with whipped cream. The girl asks for a caramel iced coffee and a blueberry scone. 

Once their server walks away, the boy hesitantly starts a conversation. Something about a Classical Literature class the two of them have together. It’s not a particularly interesting subject, but he recognizes that the boy wants to start on mutual ground. The girl humors him for a bit and Frank learns that their names are Peter and Gwen. 

“Why did you sneak into my tour group at Oscorp?” Gwen asks suddenly.

Frank cringes internally, wondering if Peter has some minor stalking issues. He remembers, back in the old days, that sometimes the girls in the neighborhood would find it adorable when Frank or his friends would pop up at their work. Gwen seems neither creeped out nor appreciative of the act. Just...curious. 

“I-I, uh, I...my dad used to work with Doctor Connors. I-I wanted to see him. I had no idea you even w-worked there,” stammers Peter. 

The kid needs to lighten up, Frank thinks. His nervous stammering is starting to become intolerable. When he glances at Gwen, however, the look on her face says she finds it charming. Frank looks down, finally noticing his second cup of coffee. His face scrunches up, realizing that he hadn’t been paying attention when the waiter dropped it off. He curses himself for his lack of awareness. He spends the next several minutes sipping his coffee and retaking stock of his surroundings to make sure nothing else has changed. 

He’s snapped out of it when a loud laugh permeates his thought process. His gaze rests on Peter, whose head is thrown back in laughter. A large grin is plastered on Gwen’s face. He doesn’t know what was said, having blocked them out in order to focus, but Peter obviously found it hilarious. He takes notice of their eyes, two pairs of twinkling stars staring back at one another. 

He spends the next thirty-or-so minutes captivated by these two teenagers. He requests a check and, by coincidence, Peter and Gwen ask for one at the same time. The two parties pay and Frank somehow finds himself holding the door open for them. 

“Thank you,” says Gwen, shuffling out.

“Thanks, man,” says Peter, giving him a nod before following the woman. 

There’s a bench outside. Frank sits down, deciding to watch the rest of the encounter. Peter walks Gwen to the curb, where her car is waiting in a metered parking spot. It’s a blue Ford Fusion. Newest generation. Nice car for a teenager. 

“Would you like a ride?” offers Gwen. 

“Uh, I’m fine, thanks. I have to go get groceries for my Aunt so I’ll just skateboard.” Peter lifts the board to emphasize his point. 

Frank notes the kid seems a bit more confident in himself. 

“Okay,” says Gwen, her breath blowing a few strands of hair from her face. “I’ll see you at school, then?” 

Peter nods. “Yeah, for sure.” 

Gwen moves to open the driver’s door. Peter turns to go. 

“Hey, Peter.”

The kid turns so fast that Frank’s pretty sure he gave himself whiplash. 

“Y-yeah?” 

“I had a really nice time.” 

A wide, boyish grin spreads across the young man’s face. “So did I.” 

She smiles at him before entering her car and shutting the door. Peter and Frank watch as her car peels away from the curb into the New York traffic. Peter lets out a bubbly laugh before turning on his heels, tossing his skateboard down, and riding off into the crowd. 

Frank lets a small smile creep its way onto his face.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed reading!


End file.
